Author Bio - most likely Pierre Jurieu (1647 - 1713) - a prominent French Calvinist theologian that taught at Sedan from 1674-81; wrote “The Clergy of French Policy” to try to attempt to preserve the rights of Huguenots (French Calvinists); had to leave France in exile due to the King’s anger at his paper; in and after 1681, worked as a pastor of the Walloon Church in Rotterdam, Holland; wrote for the French Reformed Church and aid exiles after the revocation of the Edict of Nantes which originally granted partial freedom to the Huguenots; clearly biased against the king who had removed the Huguenot rights and supported a financial rise in the lower and middle classes.
Speaker - See above.
Date/Context: “The Sighs of Enslaved France” was published in 1690 after the revocation of partial religious rights, given in the Edict of Nantes of the French Calvinists or the Huguenots. The King at the time, Louis XIV, drove these numerous critics into exile due to absolute power and his readiness to kill them if he felt it appropriate. Jurieu’s pieces are most notably characterized by an extremely harsh tone towards Louis XIV and for putting the blame on the aforementioned king.
Summary: The oppression of the lower class of France is caused by, primarily, the excessive amount of taxes on everything in life. There are land taxes and food taxes and taxes that our ancestors could not dream of. These taxes are not just numerous but are also heavy; the French people pay two hundred million in taxes every year and most, if not all, of it will go back to the king and his collectors. Little goes to actually improving the city or the lives of the lower class. These taxes are imposed by an unjust king who passes over any due process of law to set new taxes or raise previous ones. The king’s absurd amount of power allows him to easily confiscate all of the belongings and land of the second most powerful man in France. The royal authority has even gone so far as to require the lower class citizens to buy more salt so that they can pay more taxes. Why should people be charged outrageously high prices for something produced by nature and involves little effort to collect on the part of man? Even “reformers” have simply raised taxes or distributed more to the king. Now, people must not confuse just taxes with unlawful taxes. Just taxes take money and give it to the state for improvements in all aspects of its constituents lives. France’s taxes, or unlawful taxes, take all the money and give it to the king; these two, king and state, have become such conflicting thoughts that it is almost treason to declare one’s support for the state. The king only wishes to flatter himself with these ridiculous taxes; the more flattery he receives, the more joy he squeezes out of everyone else. Statues made of him are always blasphemously honorable and have him standing atop the world in a wholly unrighteous way.
Key Quotations: “The oppression of the people is caused primarily by the prodigious number of taxes and excessive levies of money that are everywhere taken in France.”
“... if we examine the use that is made of these immense sums that are collected with such abuses and extortion, we shall find all the characteristics of oppression and tyranny.”
Summary states a well and complete document of slavery in France which is one of the important thing in the article but the problem of taxes making the summary overwhelm which I think explain too much intend of a brief description of sighs of slave as there is little amount of information is given on the reformers raised on the taxes. The key quotation is perfect match of the topic.
ReplyDeleteOverall the summary is fair enough to get a good grade.